TUCSON, Ariz. – The Pac-12 Conference announced the all-conference teams for the 2023-24 men's basketball season on Tuesday and Arizona guard Caleb Love became the 10^th Wildcat in program history to earn Pac-12 Player of the Year.
 
Love was also named to the All Pac-12 First Team along with Oumar Ballo while Pelle Larsson garnered second team accolades. It is the second straight season on the first team for Ballo. The Wildcats were the only team in the conference with three honorees on the first and second team combined.
 
KJ Lewis was named honorable mention on the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team while Ballo earned a spot on the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team and Keshad Johnson was honorable mention for the all-defensive team.
 
After being named the league's player of the year, Love is now eligible to become the 34^th player in Wildcat history to be added to the Arizona Ring of Honor.
 
Previous Arizona players to win Pac-12 Player of the Year honors include: Sean Elliott (1988, 1989), Chris Mills (1993), Damon Stoudamire (1995-co), Mike Bibby (1998), Jason Terry (1999), Derrick Williams (2011), Nick Johnson (2014), Deandre Ayton (2018) and Bennedict Mathurin (2022).
 
Love averaged 20.0 points per game in conference play and shot 44.6% from the floor and 37.35 from the 3-point line. He also averaged 4.7 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game in league play as the Wildcats captured the Pac-12 regular season title by one game over Washington State. He scored a career high 36 points in the win at Oregon and scored 20 or more points 10 times in conference games and made multiple 3-point field goals in 17 out of 20 games against Pac-12 opponents. His 82 made 3-point field goals are one shy of breaking into the top 10 in Arizona history for a single season.
 
Ballo was a dominant force in the middle during Pac-12 play, recording 13 double-doubles and averaging 13.2 points and 11.0 rebounds per game. He ranked second in the conference in rebounding and field goal percentage, connecting on 65.4% of his shots from the floor. The native of Mali was tied for seventh in league play with 1.15 blocked shots per game and was the top offensive rebounder in league play at 4.1 offensive boards per game.
 
Larsson continued to expand his game on the offensive end of the floor while also being one of the most versatile defenders in the conference. He averaged 13.0 points on the year while also grabbing 4.1 rebounds and dishing out 3.7 assists. He has shot a career-high 53.5% from the floor and made a career-high 35 3-point field goals. The native of Nacka, Sweden is second in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.07.
 
Johnson also showcased his versatility on the defensive end with his ability to guard on the perimeter and in the post. He has 28 steals and 24 blocked shots this year, both personal career highs. The Oakland, Calif. native also excelled on the offensive end and set career highs in nearly every offensive category as he increased his scoring output from 7.7 last year at San Diego State to 11.9 this season.
 
Freshman KJ Lewis consistently brings energy and effort to the court each game, impacting the game well beyond the box score. He ranked fourth among conference freshmen in assists, fifth in steals, sixth in rebounding and seventh in blocked shots. In league play, Lewis averaged 5.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists while playing 18 minutes per game.
 
PLAYER OF THE YEAR, PRESENTED BY NEXTIVA
Caleb Love, Sr., G, ARIZONA
 
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR, PRESENTED BY NEXTIVA
Adem Bona, So., F, UCLA
 
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR, PRESENTED BY NEXTIVA
Myles Rice, G, WASHINGTON STATE
 
MOST IMPROVED PLAYER OF THE YEAR, PRESENTED BY NEXTIVA
Maxime Raynaud, Jr., F, STANFORD
 
SIXTH PLAYER OF THE YEAR, PRESENTED BY NEXTIVA
Koren Johnson, So., G, WASHINGTON
 
JOHN R. WOODEN COACH OF THE YEAR
Kyle Smith, WASHINGTON STATE
 
ALL-PAC-12 TEAM
 
FIRST TEAM
Oumar Ballo**, Arizona, C, R-Sr.
Adem Bona, UCLA, F, So.
Keion Brooks Jr., Washington, F, Gr.
Branden Carlson**, Utah, C, Sr.
N'Faly Dante**, Oregon, C, Sr.
Isaac Jones, Washington State, F, 5th
Caleb Love, Arizona, G, Sr.
Myles Rice, Washington State, G, R-Fr.
KJ Simpson, Colorado, G, Jr.
Jaylon Tyson, California, G, Jr.
 
SECOND TEAM
Jermaine Couisnard, Oregon, G, Sr.
Tristan da Silva, Colorado, F, Sr.
Boogie Ellis, USC, G, 5th
Pelle Larsson, Arizona, G, Sr.
Maxime Raynaud, Stanford, F, Jr.
 
HONORABLE MENTION (receiving at least three votes):
Isaiah Collier, USC
Frankie Collins, ASU
Jordan Pope, OSU
Deivon Smith, UTAH
Jaylen Wells, WSU
 
* denotes number of All-Pac-12 First Team honors
 
PAC-12 ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Isaiah Collier, USC, G
Sebastian Mack, UCLA, G
Myles Rice, Washington State, G
Jackson Shelstad, Oregon, G
Cody Williams, Colorado, F
 
HONORABLE MENTION (receiving at least three votes):
Kanaan Carlyle, STAN
KJ Lewis, ARIZ.
 
PAC-12 ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM
Oumar Ballo, Arizona, C, R-Sr.
Adem Bona**, UCLA, F, So.
Frankie Collins, Arizona State, G, Jr.
N'Faly Dante, Oregon, C, Sr.
Kobe Johnson**, USC, G, Jr.
 
HONORABLE MENTION (receiving at least three votes):
Keshad Johnson, ARIZ
Spencer Jones, STAN
Joshua Morgan, USC
KJ Simpson, COLO.
 
* denotes number of All-Defensive Team honors